Will you need to take time away from work or cut corners caring for your own
family to assist your aging parents, grandparents or close friend, if they become ill?
If you have an aging parent and a family of your own...and if you're a woman, chances are you will eventually be the one that will assist an aging parent or close friend with their affairs, personal care or coordination of care during their rehab and healing. If your parent has a hospital stay for a broken hip
after a fall or has a knee replacement surgery, most likely they will need supervision at home. In order to insure that they are safe and that they adhere
to their physical therapy exercises, get healthy meals and good personal care, someone will need to help.
In most cases, you will likely only have a week or perhaps only a few days from the date of the surgery to prepare for their care at home. If they require 24/hr care, you will need to make some quick decisions about how to cover them 24 x 7 with reliable, trusted and experienced help (should you decide not to do it all yourself...recommended).
The tasks of caring for a loved one, statistics show, usually falls on the female family member. That may cause a woman to go into overwhelm - even before she realizes what just happened to her. As women, we are the healers and most often we want to help, so naturally we say, "...sure...I'll take care of mom to make sure she is safe...," when the doctor tells you the news that she must not be alone for at least the first few weeks. If your parent was totally independent prior to entering the hospital,
this could be a tall order for them as well as for you. That is where our desire to do for others, to serve selflessly and be of help can cause our own affairs to fall behind or even to become chaotic before we even know why.
Thank Goddess...help is available!
Some of the options are:
Contact the National Association of Professional Geriatric Care Managers.
A Geriatric Care Manager is trained in providing a home safety assessment and
recommend qualified, screened and reliable caregivers. There are local
references on the site. National Association of Professional Geriatric Care Managers ~~ http://www.caremanager.org/
Contact your local Area Agency on Aging to request resources in your area.
There is lots of helpful information and links to resources on the site.
National Area Agency on Aging ~~ http://www.n4a.org/
Contact Ellen's Angles a Woman's Organization designed to organize care groups.
Ellen's Angles ~~ http://www.lifecycles.net/ellensangels/
Contact Elder Care Locator a government program to assist in locating caregivers.
Elder Care Locator ~~ http://www.eldercare.gov/Eldercare.NET/Public/Home.aspx
Other sources are your local Senior Center or Hospital Social Work or Case Management department. There are many support groups in most areas that assist
and provide good resources and often, respite care.
Best wishes with the care and oversight of your loved-ones needs.
TRISH MAIRET, MA, MFTI, CMC, Certified Care Manager
Trish Mairet is a Master's level health care professional with 20
years of experience in health care services including; Medical
Social Work and Hospital Discharge Planning, Geriatric Functional
Safety Assessment, Elder Care Management, Home Care Management,
Acute & Transitional Rehab Care-Coordination, County Mental Health
Crisis Intervention & Assessment, Conflict Resolution and
Family Counseling.
Education:
• Master's in Clinical Psychology, JFK University, 1996
• Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology, CAL State Sonoma, 1992
• Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, JFK University, 1990